The other Half
by EpicMickeyX
Summary: A BlackRose/QuickSilver Soulmate AU. Mercury is not born with a mark, yet when his soulmate is born, a beautiful red rose blossoms on his shoulder; he is only 4. He learns in life that having a soulmate might not be what he wants. Ruby is born with a mark just above her hip. She grows with it, looking forward to the day they'll meet and finally have each other to cherish, to love.
1. Chapter 1

Soulmates were old news in the world of Remnant, they had been a constant throughout the ages. Many tomes and stories revolved around the timeless tales of true love and destined happiness, the beautiful soul marks of two lovers, sometimes three, always glamourous and glorified to show off the appeal of being born or a mark forming on the youth of each generation. Then came the tragedies and dramas of being markless, so many poems and sonnets written about the tormented despair of the markless, even if they had as much opportunity of the rest of the population to find love.

As time went on, the stigma that came with being markless faded, becoming a sort of pride, being free from destiny to make their own path, find their own love, and write their own stories while the marked must bend to fate. They had to find their other half in order to feel true happiness, the tables had turned and the romanticized loves because broken hearts of lost love or emptiness that came with searching for a marked's other half. While the markless rose above it all and gained the adventurous songs of freedom and took to the skies making the world their own.

In the current medias of Remnant, soulmates were a hot commodity, 50% of the population had marks and other halves to seek out in the masses, while the other 50% remained markless but still had the same fire, drive, and passion that came with being alive in a world of opportunity. Remnant wasn't focused on who was whose, it had a revolution going on, the White Fang fighting for equality among the Faunus and Humans. Soulmates were old news.

* * *

Mercury Black's first exposure to soulmates was late night television. Staying in some derelict inn off in a corner of the world where the scum of Remnant seemed to collect like leeches in a river bed. He'd been four, dumped in the room and the TV turned on, the rancid smell of booze wafted in from downstairs and his father had barked out a command to stay put before disappearing into the cesspool a few steps away. Mercury could remember some celebrity showing off the gold mark adorning her chest, just below her clavicle. She had been blushing and clinging to another woman, a blonde blued-eyed cookie cutter model he'd seen in commercials and ads for random products. Her mark was purple, a light, soft color that rested along her left wrist. They were the happiest people he'd ever seen.

He knew he didn't have a mark, his skin was clean of any mark symbolizing another half, he felt his stomach twist towards the end of the show, wishing so badly to have that other half if only to have someone. His father was markless, he'd spat that out when Mercury had asked the next morning, his mother had been too; then again, Marcus really hadn't asked the woman all that much about herself. Mercury went on with his life, temporarily forgetting the late night program he'd watched; his father took him everywhere for his work. Something Mercury was blissfully ignorant of until a spatter of blood coated his skin one night, his father standing over some poor sap who'd tried outsmarting some hot shot from the city. Mercury watched lien exchange hands at a bar, watched some of the money go towards a beer and a soda, his father patted a seat next to him and his blissful ignorance was gone.

Whatever pride Mercury had felt in the beginning quickly dissipated, too many slip ups got him a new bruise, any noise cost him a cuff to his ears, and target missed earned him a Hell he always swore he'd never go back to but somehow, he'd always end up there. It was during one of those hells, his stomach hurting from his father kicking him down, his face bruised and lip bleeding from trying to keep his cries held back that his right shoulder began to ache. He was barely conscious at first, it had been gentle at the beginning, like a bruise forming, he didn't remember being hit there, but through the smell of liquor and blood his brain began to register it hurt worse than any injury he'd sustained so far. He held back his tears, hands clawing at the spot, thinking something was truly wrong now; that he'd die here in this pitiful corner of some cabin they'd been staying at for a few weeks. Marcus was in the other room, the smell of gun oil had begun to permeate the air and Mercury stole away to the bathroom, praying something wasn't wrong. When he'd finally pulled his shirt off, his eyes locked with the amount of faded bruises, swollen cheek, and then the new ones forming along his ribcage and stomach. His shoulder spasmed again and he squeaked, his free hand flying to the spot and freezing when he felt raised skin. Like something was trapped underneath, it hurt to touch like a raw wound, he turned expecting to see some horrific thing, his mind racing with thoughts of blood and pain that a soon to by five year old should never have to have.

His eyes widened briefly at what he saw, a rose. A red one, seemly had just bloomed there, right under his skin. It was beautiful, a pretty, red color that was brighter than the blood he'd seen throughout his short life. The petals were complicated yet simple, forming just a singular rose on the back of his shoulder, he felt a relief was over him, a kind of giddiness as well he'd never felt before. His soulmate had been born…he had a feeling deep down that's what is was, today was their birthday…someone was destined for him. He pulled on his shirt, not bothered by the drying blood or soreness of his body as his snuck into the kitchen, looking for the battered calendar, covered in 'x's of various colors and a few rips from pins and thumb tacks stuck in and out of the thing.

His eyes followed the line of 'x's to the space free of one, his father was so meticulous about it being the right day, his work depended on it. He read the day, the month, and year; he committed it to memory, the day his other half had been born. His heart felt lighter, as he thought about what kind of person they'd be, how they would meet, if they'd be a boy or girl. So many questions were forming in his excitement, even knowing it would be a long while before they would meet. His only clue to who they would be is his mark, the beautiful, red rose etching his shoulder in a permanent bond. It only took a half a second for it all to be ruined when Marcus entered the room, reeking of liquor and oil.

Mercury flinched as he neared, the excitement turned to dread the blink of an eye as Marcus crouched to Mercury's level and placed a hand on his shoulder, his mark was still tender to touch but he refrained from giving any indication of it being there.

"…who said you could leave that room?" His voice was rough and sluggish, it was the same withdrawn tone that inhabited it every day of Mercury's life. Marcus' grasp on his shoulder tightened and the Hell continued.

It continued long into his boyhood, long after Marcus found the mark cleaning up after a fit of rage, the long gash down Mercury's back a grim reminder to never to shoot to prematurely, the broken trigger finger a reminder to keep it from getting 'itchy' Marcus as snarled. Mercury was in a state somewhere between exhaustion and anguish when Marcus as ripped his face around, eyes burning with a rage Mercury had never seen before. His mark soon became a target, wounds began to litter and scar the delicate flower painting his skin, the symbol of his unknown love became a battleground of twisted education on his father's behalf.

Words became sharpened knives if put just right, Marcus went from knowing almost nothing, being markless himself, to knowing figures and the probabilities of meeting a soulmate. The words 'unwanted', 'unloved', and 'rejected' became a regular plague on the now young boy's mind. His training was harder, it was exhausting mentally and physically to make it through each day. Each mistake lead to a new scar, a new reminder to learn faster or do better. His arms were a catastrophe of scars for a boy of 13 years, his soul mark was in even worse condition. The original raised skin of the mark has long been lost to the collage of punishments, the color always shown through each new scar but the shape had been destroyed a long time ago.

It was at the age of 13, Mercury decided he wanted to die. The excitement of his soulmate's birthday had faded, year after year with nothing but suffering and hurt, knowing his soulmate knew nothing of him, could do nothing for him, and only knew him as some possibility in their life. The happiness he'd felt on that day had crumbled into a bitterness that gnawed at his insides; he didn't celebrate his own birthday, he didn't even really remember when it was. Each year was just another year to him, stuck under Marcus' thumb, praying each job would better him enough to avoid a new reminder.

It was his soulmate's birthday, they'd be 9 today. He was leaning over the railing of an old bridge, thinking about the plummet to the bottom. Would his aura shatter on impact? Would that kill him? Would it protect him? He pulled himself up to sit on the railing, imagining the sweet freedom he'd feel for a breath moment before nothingness. He hoped it'd be painless, he'd certainly had enough pain, and he didn't want this event to hurt. He just wanted to end it.

He stood, his side throbbing from another bruised rib, his left shoulder hurting from the stock of a gun recoiling back so hard to leave a mark. His ears burned from the cuffs he'd received trying to interrupt a client, his stomach was squirming from lack of food and the thrill of release that he was sure would come when he finally leapt from this bridge. From this forsaken Hellhole he called his life. He held on to a support beam, thinking about his soulmate, the bitterness in his heart burning like an unquenched flame, he was angry at his other half. Their ignorance to his pain and suffering, he dug his nails into aging wood; gritting his teeth as hot tears welled in his eyes.

He would die here and they'd never even know. They'd go on living whatever happy life they had been given, their mark disappearing in an instant leaving their skin free and smooth. Mercury choked out a sob, his other half would probably be disappointed it's gone, some conversation starter lost. They'd move on and find someone else and he'd be free, finally. He hurt all over, the pain was awful, and crying on the ledge of some old bridge, hoping his death would be quick and painless for him. He began to let go, moving to finally jump, the sun was setting, it was getting cold and his thin jacket did little to keep him warm.

He willed his body to fall but his feet were planted firmly, scoffed ratty shoes stared back at him as he looked down, he could see the bottom of the ravine he was over as well. The will to jump and end it all left him in an instance and he reeled backward landing hard on the bridge walkway. The tears returned in a rush of fear, he cried long and hard, not out of bitterness and anger at another life blissfully unaware of him. He cried out of fear for almost letting go of them, for almost hurting them; if it hurt when his half came into the world, then it would certainly hurt for him to leave it, especially in the way he'd intended. If he hadn't gone quickly, would they feel him slowly fading away, burning and searing pain wracking their mark as he died. His soulmate was only 9, Mercury couldn't be the one to hurt and abandon them in such a way. They wouldn't be able to go on properly, knowing they had, had another half…but never got the chance to meet them.

All because Mercury couldn't do it anymore. Mercury continued to cry, dry sobbing when tears finally stopped coming. He was just 13 and yet, he wasn't a boy anymore. He had taken lives, witnessed countless murders in the name of dirty lien, and taking his own life wouldn't benefit anyone but himself. He cleaned up and went home, Marcus was well into his work when the door slammed shut behind Mercury. He didn't spare him a passing glance as the young man disappeared into his room; Mercury curled up in his bed, eyes staring forward into the darkened corners of the room. He silently wished his soulmate a happy birthday and drifted off into a heavy sleep, something he'd seldom had in the last few years of his existence.

Mercury is 13 when he decides he'll live to find them, he'll live to never hurt them, and he'll live to love them. The sentiment is short lived when he wakes the next morning to continue living on in the Hell that was his life.

He's 18 when he kills him; the burning rage, the years of pain, and hatred that has sprouted in his chest and had grown within him. The man he had become was not a good man, he was twisted and gnarled inside like an ugly, old iron tree. His heart was hard, layered with walls to keep out hurt and sadness that he had long since abandoned with his growth, he'd never known love. His soulmate was a mere after thought, a little blip on the radar in his vast emptiness of newfound freedom from a monster. He could feel the shock setting in as he dragged his father's corpse down the pathway to their cabin, his legs were not his own so he stumbled and caught himself a few times. His lungs burned from the smoke and adrenaline still coursing through him, he was bleeding, broken, and tired.

The women standing on the edge of the forest are waiting, watching him, one in intrigue and the other in horror. He can see the one that is afraid reach for weapons out of the corner of his eye, he focused on the other, the calm one, as she spoke. His hand moved idly to his soul mark, the nerves there are deadened but he still places his fingers over it protectively, he hasn't truly thought about his soulmate in years. In this moment however, he thought of them, of the possibilities that might be because of his newfound freedom. Cinder is offering him some of those possibilities, ones he can't seem to refuse; there are no promises of love or safety in Cinder's care. There are promises of destruction, of revenge, to bring misery to the masses and right all the wrong's Mercury had been dealt in the care of a monstrous man.

He finds comfort and solace with them, travelling Remnant for their cause allowed him to see much of what he could not when travelling with Marcus. He enjoyed it for a time before the glamour wore off and he is reminded each and every city has an underbelly of lies, Cinder even heeded his advice when looking for less than reputable people. They meet Roman in a bar, he's flirtatious with Cinder and Emerald cuts in like she has many times before.

Emerald is markless and free to make her own choices, Cinder is marked, yet Emerald seemed to crave that rare affection Cinder bestowed upon them from time to time. Mercury is silent about his own mark for a time, it's not until after they've received Adam's word of loyalty that things begin to move smoothly and at a rapid pace. Almost a year together, soon to be 19, Mercury is introduced to the concept of true rejection in the form of Roman's wife. A silent, petite, and dangerous woman; Neo.

Mercury was irritated, contemplating an outing to go deal with some Faunus who was preparing to skip town; Roman seemed…reluctant to handle it. Emerald was in agreement with Mercury about the situation for once, but they hadn't fully decided their course of action. Its late afternoon when she saunters in, heels clicking, a giddy smile on her face as Roman calls out her name.

"Neo! Oh baby, you said a few more days!" his tone is elated, something Mercury has never heard from the crime lord. Her hands move quickly and he seemed to study them before taking them in his own and kissing her gently,

"Of course I'm happy to see you baby, Just a little stressed with her riding my ass like she does…and then Red making a nuisance of herself with all her little friends." He replied with a playful nudge of his shoulder to the small woman, it's the most unguarded display Mercury had seen from Roman in the time of knowing him. Roman even takes Neo's coat like a gentleman would do for his lady, she removes her gloves and take his hat teasingly, sticking her tongue out.

Mercury's sees the mark before he can really register is the rest of her hands, they're scarred with what looked like numerous cuts that healed too slowly. Not fast enough to get by without leaving a mark, and the damage severe enough to leave a mark, something Mercury was quite familiar with. Roman catches him staring,

"You got something to say, kid?" he barked, Neo looking his way, her hands falling away from her husband. The simple band on her wedding finger glints in the overhead lighting and she faced Mercury with a kind of apprehension before looking back at Roman.

"Her soul mark…" Mercury began before Roman cut him off

"He didn't want her." Roman snapped, arms slinging around Neo gently, kissing her neck soothingly. Neo frowned and nodded, hands forming symbols with her fingers Mercury didn't understand.

"Babe, you don't have to talk about it." He murmured in Neo's ear. She shook her hand and patted his arm before gesturing to Mercury. Roman kissed her cheek and sighed,

"Neo is not my soulmate…we met when she was still with her…guy. Some uppity lower class citizen. He and I never got along to begin with. My soulmate had yet to make their grand appearance and…" he shrugged, cocking his head a bit.

"I had a thing for Neo. Went out of my way to learn sign language and make her feel welcome in my little ring of criminals and thieves." Roman finished. Neo's hands picked up and she began to sign, Roman would watch and then glance up at Mercury with an annoyed glare.

"My soul mark used to be teal. I was rejected after my soulmate decided he didn't want to deal with me anymore. He didn't like that I wouldn't speak. We had been together 3 years." Roman translated. Mercury waited, a cold knot forming in his stomach, he didn't like where this was going.

"He didn't like my semblance either." The duo continued, Roman's hands cupped Neo's frame protectively, the long pause gave him ample time to kiss her cheek and shoulder in a loving manner.

"I can tell the rest if you want?" he asked carefully, Neo jerked her head and continued,

"He got mad, I wanted to make things work but then he did this." Roman ground out for her, Neo gestured to the cuts on her hands and then the soul mark. The teal color was a fogged black and it was blurry on her skin, as if it had been smudged. It looked like an intricate vine that coiled and sprouted into leaves during moments it held shape before is faded out again into the black smudged mess. He watched with wide eyes for a moment before meeting her gaze, she began to sign again

"This is true rejection. A rejection of your entire being as a whole. He didn't want me and the connection we had from our first meeting, 3 years of time spent building something together, ruined." Roman growled. Neo's hands fell and she comforted him with a gentle pat, he pulled away and sighed pinching the bridge of his nose.

"After that mess, he up and disappeared and we grew closer. Married her about a year after it all…we may not be connected the way everyone says we have to be but I think I did pretty well for myself." Roman took on a teasing tone and Neo smacked his arm playfully. Mercury frowned, they looked happier together, he couldn't count the times he'd seen Roman get angry and huff his cigars like they were a life giving substance.

Neo stole Roman's hat and winked before signing something, he grumbled under his breath and she snickered silently.

"As for me." He began with a grunt, pulling his neckerchief down to show off a royal blue anchor. Mercury held back a grin, it made him look…almost pirate like with the fancy hair and eyeliner; but not a tough pirate per say…more like the kind that stole husbands in dockside bars. Roman glared when he began to snicker, Neo poking Roman playfully

"Cram it kid! I'm not fond of this thing, it's been the butt end of one too many jokes. I've yet to meet my soulmate and I don't care too." Roman grumbled before Neo replaced his hat with a kiss to his cheek. Mercury watched a little longer as the accompanied each other to his office, the promise of a drink in the air as Neo settled into his embrace.

Mercury stood slowly and went to find Emerald, the air had turned to something lighter. Something foreign to him on a number of levels, he figured fresh air that tasted of stale seaside and dust emissions would be better than cigars and whiskey fueled passions.

Mercury is officially 19 when they enter Beacon's walls. The guise of students and uniforms to match allow them to blend in with the rest of Haven's masses. No one bats an eye at them, if the students don't recognize them they give little indication they care. His first encounter with her is short and easily brushed off. Emerald helped her up and they continue on, her directions aiding them in finding the rather secluded guest dorms. Cinder took a fancy to them, their lack of populace allowed for late night ventures and calls to be conducted easily. Communication was key in this kind of operation after all.

The second time he sees her, something began to nag at his brain, like an old memory. It's the first class of the day and she sits a few rows in front, the bright crimson color of her hood is the focus of his thoughts. He'd seen that color somewhere before in his memories, it was much too bright to be blood, and he knew he'd never met this girl before. Though he guessed she was the trouble maker Roman had spoken of when it came to the failure of some Dust heists. Class dismissed and she bounced up, chatting the ear off of her fellow classmate, the heiress. The white hair and frosty demeanor was quite the giveaway. In the process she dropped her books, a quiet squeak and she knelt down to grab them, her smile was soft, content, even with the mess she made she looked happy.

Mercury grabbed a notebook from the floor and offered it to her once she had stood to greet him with her thanks.

"Oh! Hey! You're from Haven, we've met! Sorta." She chuckled sheepishly,

"I don't think I caught your name during our first meeting, I doubt you remember mine. It's Ruby, Ruby Rose…and you?" she offered, suddenly her chattiness had fallen on him, her classmate taking this opportunity to escape.

"…Mercury." He huffed, offering the notebook again, Ruby's smile faltered at his blunt tone and she reached for the notebook.

"Sorry about holding you up Mercury, did you find the dorms ok?" she continued, grabbing the notebook gently. Her fingertips barely grazed his hand when a shock ran up his spine and targeted his shoulder, more specifically, his mark. Mercury ripped his hand back, the notebook hitting the floor again as Ruby fumbled, the rest of her things falling in quick succession. She stared at him, eyes wide with something he couldn't identify; his pulse had quickened and his stomach was twisting painfully. He felt like he was going to be sick, his heart was pounding away in his chest and all he could do was step back. Away from her, from this moment, he wasn't prepared for this at all; for his soulmate to be someone so innocent and sweet looking it made him want to choke.

"Mercury." Ruby called, she's staring still, patience had settled in her voice and she smiled. Gentle, caring, and understanding. Everything Mercury is not she seems to suddenly exude, she looked so childish mere moments ago but now she's the centre of his world. He can't think of any expectation she didn't meet, she didn't have any, she was perfect.

"…are you scared?" she asked, Mercury felt his throat tighten as she approached, by now the professor had even cleared out. It was just them, he prayed another class would tumble in to save him but not a soul entered like they knew what was going on. He felt something finally give and he was gone, out of the room and away from her; out of everyone in Remnant she was his other half. He didn't know whether to think of her as a blessing or a curse come to ruin his life that he had finally pieced together.

He hated how she had looked at him, her eyes, the liquid silver burning with something he could only believe to be love and adoration he didn't deserve. He murdered human and Faunus alike for scraps all his life and suddenly, here was his other half. His other half was something pure, untarnished by the hatred the world poisoned the young with, she was as blissfully unaware as he'd expect someone like her to be. He made it to the courtyard and stakes a claim on a nearby bench, he's winded but he knows he shouldn't be, he's ran longer distances than this giving more effort and still maintained proper breathing. His insides squirmed with the bubbly excitement he didn't want to feel, he wanted to feel anger, to reject her, anything but this. He wanted his soulmate to be someone he could hate.

His older ideals of protecting and finding something akin to happiness were a childish dream, as he was now, he knew better than to want any of those things. He was supposed to be a killer, craving revenge, and to destroy all that those in power had built. Yet, here he was, made weak by the stray touch of his rather innocent soulmate.

* * *

 **WHEN YOU'RE GARBAGE AND HAVE NO SELF CONTROL.**

 **So this is gonna be a 3 shot with: Mercury centric, Ruby centric, and then a final chapter of them trying to find where they stand. I have the second one written but not the third and I want to write that one before uploading the second. So let's see if this gets some positive feedback? I dunno. We shall see~**

 **Writing Mercury as happy is actually kinda difficult so if you're looking for that AU I mentioned from a previous work "Is it a Deal?" it's still in the works. I can't get a feel for him being happy with kids and wife just yet so hopefully this will help!**

 **Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

Ruby is only 3 when her sister poked the black spot on her tummy and declared loudly, to the whole neighborhood really, that Ruby had a soulmate. The word is foreign to the toddler, hair bunched up in messy pigtails, her shoes are somehow missing again, but her mind is reeling from the word her older sister had just shouted. She lifts her shirt to look, the black thing on her tummy has been there as long as she could remember.

"Sissy?" she managed, pulling herself up to stand and follow after on unsteady legs. Yang turned to look back at her, a playful grin showing missing teeth.

"Was'at word?" she babbled, pulling on her shirt, eyes going wide when Yang waved her in close like she was going to share a secret.

"I heard uncle Qrow, say you had one last time he visited, he said it to daddy. They were talking about the color though." Yang explained, pulling Ruby along now as they went after the other kids playing along the riverbed.

"Why color?" she asked, Yang shouting at a boy who was splashing too much turned to look down at Ruby with a frown. Like she was thinking about her answer,

"Well…Daddy said that black is a rare color for a soulmark…which is what that spot on you tummy is. A soulmark." She declared proudly. Ruby frowned, looking to the ground, her pudgy toes pulled at the grass and she looked up at Yang.

"Why is black a bad color?" she blurted after a few moments of silence. Yang let go of her hand to tumble down to the water's edge,

"I didn't say it was bad, just rare!" she called up, pulling up some flowers that grew along the edge, they were white with blue tips and grew in abundance here. Ruby liked them, she padded after, giggling excitedly at the promise of flower crowns as Yang placed one behind Ruby's ear. Her questions about the mark and what exactly a soulmate was were forgotten in exchange for an afternoon by the river, chasing tadpoles and weaving flower crowns together for daddy. They returned home before sunset, Ruby presented her messy crown proudly, greeting her daddy with a hug and kiss similar to Yang. Ruby took note of the mark on his arm, it had always been there, but like the one on her tummy. A thought slowly came to mind as he tucked her into bed after supper and a bath, he had a soulmark too, and she yawned and rolled into her covers thinking little of the matter.

Ruby's 5 when she noticed uncle Qrow's soulmark, a light blue snowflake in the palm of his hand. She blinked and pulled his hand into her lap more, their game of patty cake forgotten,

"Uncle Qrow you have a soulmate!" she declared happily, looking up at him with eager eyes. He inhaled sharply and nods,

"Sure do. Aren't I just the luckiest?" he grumbled softly as Ruby traced the pattern in his palm.

"It's a snowflake! Have you met them!?" she asked excitedly, Qrow's carefully constructed smile fell. Ruby felt her heart drop a littler at the hurt in his eyes, he looked…lost.

"Nah. I haven't met 'em kiddo. I kind of don't want to either…" he trailed off, the smile he'd worn most of the day didn't return. Ruby tilted her head and hugged his arm,

"Why don't you want to meet them? Yang says they're your other half! That they complete you! She read that in a magazine too!" Ruby exclaimed, releasing his hand to place hers on her knees in excitement.

"Well…I like someone else…and to be honest I don't want to meet my soulmate because they're a Schnee. You can tell because my soulmark is a snowflake." He explained gently, opening his palm and circling the symbol with his finger.

"This symbol belongs to the Schnee family, they've been around for centuries, they're one of the rare families that have a soulmark just for them." He continued, pulling Ruby in his lap and holding her there in a gentle hug.

"The person I liked wasn't a Schnee and I am perfectly happy to go on without knowing my soulmate, you don't have to like them if you don't want too. You understand?" he ruffled her hair and sighed heavily.

"…What if I want to meet my soulmate…I still can, right?" she felt him tense up and he nodded quickly

"Ruby of course you can! I'm weird y'know? I don't want to find that happiness but you, you go find that special someone, ok?" he supplied quickly. Ruby grinned and hurried out of his lap, Yang was hurrying towards them and tackled Qrow to the ground.

"I finished practicing! Let's play!" she declared triumphantly, Qrow chuckled as Ruby joined in. They roughhoused for a few minutes, Qrow making growling noises like the Grimm they were taught to avoid at young ages. He chased them playfully, catching Yang and blowing a raspberry on her belly while Ruby watched in a fit of laughter. There was a loud crack and suddenly Qrow was tense, he looked to the tree they were under, a branch looked ready to fall. Ruby watched his expression change, the tired smile had returned during their game only to fade to something unreadable. Yang pulled Ruby away and they hurried back to the house, she had the same expression, Ruby didn't understand it.

"Daddy said that sometimes…Qrow will get sad. That he needs some alone time when he gets sad." Yang explained, just on the threshold of the house. Ruby frowned

"Why did the tree make him sad?" she asked, Yang shrugged

"He gets sad when bad things happen and I guess that was a bad thing." She explained before heading into the house. Ruby turned to look back towards the tree, her uncle was seated beneath it, the branch in his hands as he looked off into the horizon. Daddy tells her not to worry when she brings it up that night during dinner, Qrow didn't stay much longer after the branch incident. She poked at her carrots, lost in thought, prompting her daddy to ask her what was wrong.

"Qrow got sad after a tree limb broke so he stopped playing with us…" she mumbled, Yang looked up from the mess she was making on her plate with chicken nuggets, mash potatoes, and carrots. She looked slightly irritated,

"Ruby…sweetheart, who told you uncle Qrow was sad?" he asked, leaning forward to look at her carefully.

"Yang said he was sad! I just don't know why a branch breaking would make him sad or why it's a bad thing!" she protested, throwing her hands up. Taiyang turned to Yang

"Where did you get that idea from Yang?" he asked carefully, Yang scoffed and crossed her arms defiantly

"I heard you and uncle Qrow talking! You told him to stop moping when bad things happen to him! I was just repeating what you said to Ruby so she wouldn't bother him." She complained, glaring up at Taiyang. He glared right back

"Yang I told you to stop eavesdropping when he visits, some of that stuff is for grown-ups only." He chided gently, Yang groaned and pushed herself away from the table. He didn't make any indication of calling her back to the table, instead he turned to Ruby.

"Sweetie…sometimes things happen to Qrow, and he lets those things affect him too much…it's not the branch breaking that made him sad it's something else. Something only he can deal with, so don't worry too much ok?" he soothed kissing her forehead before pulling himself out of his chair.

"Yang you didn't finish eating!" he called into the living room, he waited a moment before she snapped back

"I'm not hungry anymore!" Taiyang groaned quietly as Ruby watched his scoot his chair into place and head to the doorway, her eyes fell to the mark just below his tattoo.

"Daddy. Did you ever meet your soulmate?" she asked quickly, he paused and looked back at her with a warm smile.

"I did." He replied, a little more blunt than Ruby was expecting.

"…were you happy to have met her?" she asked, he faltered, eyes going wide.

"She…she made me the happiest I had been in a long, long time sweetheart." He managed with a warm smile. Ruby returned the smile and nodded before hastily climbing down from her chair and hurrying to her room, Taiyang called after in protest.

"Ruby you didn't finish your dinner!" she ignored him in favor of looking at her soulmark. She traced the shape of it and hummed happily, she'd meet them someday and they'd make each other, they'd smile at each other the way her daddy had smiled, thinking about his soulmate.

It's Ruby's 9th birthday when Yang digs up all her old magazines on soulmates and soulmates quizzes. Ruby has had many free hours spent to fantasizing about her soulmate, what they look like, their personality, whether they like puppies or kittens, or both. It becomes an activity for the group of girls spending the night in celebration of Ruby's birthday, they fill out ridiculous personality quizzes that are '100% guaranteed' to predict the personality of your other half. Yang is teasing and playful the whole time, distributing quizzes and making comments about determined personalities.

Everyone already knows she's markless herself, but she wears it like a badge of honor. It's not really rare, some of Ruby's friends at school are markless too, but in the small group of girls the only one without a mark is Yang. Ruby is filling out a quiz, asking her, her favorite things and color. Then asking if she'd save an old man from a Grimm, and various other things meant to test her own personality before determining the personality of her soulmate. It's well into the evening, presents have already been opened and a few pizzas devoured; cake has been announced and Tai proudly brings out a large sheet cake decorated with roses and candles. The girls scramble up and the quizzes are momentarily forgotten. Tai winked at her, and sets it on the table before turning the lights down low, they begin to sing and Ruby feels elated. Happy to be here, in this moment, when her stomach begins to ache. It stims from the mark but she pushes it away, especially when another more gravelly voice joins in. She blows out the candles quickly and the lights are turned on. Uncle Qrow grinned at her sheepishly from the kitchen doorway, a cardboard box under his arm,

"Uncle Qrow!" she squealed tackling his chest, even Taiyang looks relieved he made it.

"Sorry I was late, took a minute to get your present." He explained ruffling her hair.

"I'm just glad you made it!" she cried happily, a small yap catching her attention, her eyes dart to the box and Yang is there in an instant. Both have expressed a want for a pet, specifically, a dog.

"I know it's technically a birthday gift but I think you two can share him. He's both your responsibility, you understand girls?" Taiyang asked as the rest of the room fell into excited murmured as they opened the box.

Inside was a tiny puppy, he looked like a black and brown potato, he looked up and barked, springing up from his butt and wagging his little nub for a tail. The room became a chorus of aw's and cooing at the puppy, Qrow looked pleased at the reaction and leaned back against the door frame as Yang and Ruby gushed over their pet.

"I love him so much!" Ruby exclaimed hurrying to hug her dad and then to her uncle

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she squealed, Yang hurrying to express her gratitude for the new dog as well.

"You'll have to train him, he's still just a puppy." Taiyang chuckled, watched the group of girls surround the small dog and shower it with affection as well as a few nuggets of puppy food from a bag provided by Qrow. The commotion had died down finally, the girls had settled in with cake and the new puppy playfully barking and scrambling along the wood floors excitedly as he explored his new home.

By the time cake had been eaten and they had settled into the living room again, her stomach ache had become less of a stomach ache, and more of an unsettling feeling. The kind she got when she was nervous or upset, she had a feeling something bad was happening but she couldn't figure out what. Yang tapped her arm happily.

"Got your quiz done!" Yang proclaimed cheerfully, pulling away from her thoughts.

"Lay it on me!" Ruby replied happily, forcing a small smile, Yang nodded and the girls crowded around to read along with her.

"Alright Rubes, so it says based on your answers that your soulmate, will be your polar opposite in everything you two do together. That their personality will often clash with yours' and they will have a tendency to be anger prone and stubborn but will show compassion and loyalty to you with time." Yang declared, smirking in her general direction before another friend of Ruby's shoved her quiz in Yang's lap.

"Just my luck…then again these quizzes are never accurate…" she sighed, glowering as the other girls began to make teasing remarks about her soulmate's supposed personality compared to theirs. Many of theirs' were predicted as sweet and caring, no one else had one that was considered a polar opposite like Ruby's. She didn't know whether to count it as lucky or not, the sense of anxiousness in the pit of her stomach didn't help either, maybe it was the idea of it all? The idea of her soulmate, a destined one to love her for everything she was, even if the quiz predicted they would fight her tooth and nail on nearly everything they'd come to face together. She was only 9 now, and she already had someone meant for her, it was beginning to make sense why there had been literary pieces she'd read in school about the tragedies of fate. The countless number of literature required by her school to read about defying ones destiny, to give them hope of creating their own. Ruby snapped from her thoughts at the cries for party games from her friends; she put those thoughts away, she was still young and had plenty of time to think about things.

They play Conquers of Remnant, twister, and finally move on to multiplayer video games that lead to a round robin tournament of the girls trying to defeat the reigning champion, Qrow. Taiyang is cleaning up in the kitchen when Ruby enters for another glass of milk to go with the snacks set up in living room for the girls when they get peckish. The anxious feeling has remained, stuck like some rock in her gut, it is a strange weight on her heart that she can't understand yet.

"…dad?" she began, retrieving the milk carton from the fridge; he looked over, sending her a warm smile.

"Yes? What is it sweetheart?" he asked, turning to face her, showing her his full attention.

"…is it ok to be nervous about my soulmate, about my future with them?" she asked, looking at him nervously.

"…oh honey, you're still so young, way too young to be worried about something like this, you still have to meet them. You need to see what kind of person they are and what kind of relationship you'd like with them." He explained, moving to her side to wrap her in a hug. Giving her a tight squeeze,

"You don't have to feel rushed or like you have to love them, you're both probably very young and when you meet you will probably have had some experience dating I would think. No one said you have to remain single or alone until you meet. You can go out and have fun, when you're older of course, you can meet people and find out who you like, girls, boys, introvert, extrovert. You have a whole life ahead of you sweetheart, you don't need to get caught up in the idea of having things by the book or planned out. Chances are they're going to go through a similar journey." Taiyang explained, kneeling down to look her in the eyes and kiss her forehead.

"Then, when they see you, and the wonderful young woman you've grown up into. They'll know in that moment, when you meet and feel that spark that tells you, you're meant for each other. They'll know with all their heart that you were meant to be together." He finished, cupping her cheeks and rubbing the tears away that had begun to tumble down her face.

"Thank you, thank you daddy…" she breathed, hugging him tightly and letting him dry her eyes. He poured her glass of milk once she had calmed down and she had cleaned herself up, washing away her tears and returning to the fun in the living room. It was almost her turn again, she settled in and grabbed a cookie to snack on happily, and the tension in her stomach had eased. It was still present but not as oppressing, in all honesty it felt closer to a low thrum of excitement now. The tournament finally ended with Qrow still the reigning champion, he chuckled teasingly as Ruby and Yang and tackled him to floor. The other girls cheered them on, Qrow's chuckle had become a full out laugh as they wrestled, even the new puppy began to yap at them in the excitement. He sighed heavily when they began to wind down, Ruby let out a yawn which spread to a few of the other girls, and some were already pulling out their sleeping bags and pajamas. It was nearing 1 in the morning, Taiyang had gone up an hour ago, telling Qrow he could use the couch with a dismissive wave of his hand and telling the girls to get to sleep soon. Qrow sat up, easily heaving the two girls to the floor gently with a half-smile. Ruby hummed happily before giving him a quick peck to the cheek before following the group upstairs to pile in her room to get to bed. She pulled on her pajamas in the bathroom and brushed her teeth before plopping into her bed, her friends crowding around in their sleeping bags, blankets, and pillows.

Things were winding down, Ruby could feel the sleep settling in before she curled up in her covers and sighed. Ruby's thoughts turned to her soulmate once more, this time they were more…inviting. She fantasized about their first meeting, the baited breaths, and the shy glances. She didn't know if she liked girls or boys yet but she liked to think if it was a girl, they would drive her to be better and she would do the same for them. She would like them to be kind and passionate…and the requirements for the boy were essentially the same; though she felt she liked boys a little more than girls as she actually tried putting a face to the desired qualities.

She liked blue eyes…maybe, brown hair? Or a color that was exciting and unique, though the black color of her soul mark made her feel they would be darker in color, yet she could still dream. Ruby drifted off with the face of a young man in mind, a warm smile, and kind eyes; looking at her with love and adoration.

Ruby lives a life that's never boring, her uncle trained her to use one of the deadlier weapons Signal academy has seen in a long time. She watches friends meet their first loves and still watches when hearts are broken at the end of said first loves. Ruby has crushes here and there but never acted on them, it just wasn't…her thing at the time she supposed as she grew. She was determined, focused, and passionate about her future. She wanted to be a huntress, she wanted to help people, and she wanted to be strong. For herself and for her soulmate, she still had yet to meet them but she had seen cases where soulmates were indeed complete opposites. Huntresses and hunters alike who were destined to those who just weren't meant to fight. She wanted to protect her soulmate if that was the case, she wanted to care for them if they needed her.

Her mark rested just above her hip bone now, with her training she had lost some of her baby fat and it had settled there, a few centimeters from her belly button. The black wing in mid-beat, the beautiful etching and the color of midnight. In the beginning she had first disliked the color, it was troubling; the color was rare, that was definitely a truth she would have to come to terms with. Bright colors were the most common in soul marks, she knew this from a young age. The black mark no longer bothered her, it was her own, a symbol unique to her soulmate and she came to love the color. It was the color of the midnight sky, when all the stars were missing and the moon was covered by the clouds, it was not a depressing color like many made it out to be.

Upon entering Beacon, and meeting the vast array of students, she thinks it could be Blake. Her soulmate, a strong, beautiful girl with a veil of mystery about her. Ruby is not disappointed when it is discovered they're not soulmates, that Blake, like Yang, is markless. Weiss has a mark, but refuses to show them, she does mention it is on her lower back and they understand her hesitance to show. She is an heiress after all and flaunting a soul mark could lead to situations Weiss wanted to avoid. Ruby meets Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora, and Ren; and her view of soulmates is expanded upon vastly.

Nora and Ren have known each other since youth, they were soulmates, yet acted more as family. Nora's mark was on her chest, over her heart, it was a beautiful green lily, looking like it was captured mid-blossom on her skin. Ren's was a pink heart that seemed electrified, little marks coming off looking like lightning bolts; his was on his back, right between the shoulder blades. Ruby could see they were close, Nora was already ready to protect Ren and he in turn protected her. They didn't seem romantic in their actions outside of combat, though they were destined for each other, Nora would just smile and shrug when questioned. She had a look of longing in her eyes when she focused on her soulmate

"Sometimes you don't start out as lovers, sometimes you start out as what you need…and we needed family…" she trailed off, looking back to Ruby with a wide grin. Nora changed the subject multiple times before Ren had returned to the group. Jaune was the odd ball case it seemed, especially when it came to his soulmate. He and Pyrrha weren't destined for each other, their marks couldn't be farthest from each other's; but they still seemed to dance around one another like awkward school children.

Ruby had never seen two destined people, fall for someone who wasn't their soulmate, it was strange but at the same time it was refreshing. They went well together, Ruby figured if it weren't for their soul marks they would be perfect together, if they ever got together that is. Yang becomes another example, paving the way for Ruby's concepts on soulmates to be more than just blind love and devotion because of destiny, as Yang lacked a destiny in love.

Ruby watched in eagerness as Yang and Blake grew close. Her sister is carving her own path and she's never been happier or more proud of her sister for it. Ruby liked the way they looked at each other, Yang and Blake meet each other's gazes on occasion and Ruby can see something there. Even when things seem to be falling apart, and they're terrified for their friends; Blake is upset and Yang is trying to understand, though Weiss isn't helping.

Tensions are high but somehow, things work out, even if it seems they're going a mile a minute. There is Roman with his heists, Blake with revealing her true self and introducing her new friend, and of course, Penny. Ruby feels like it all happened in the blink of an eye and its breath taking. Their outing leads to a reunion with Penny, and Penny reveals the fact she's not truly real and along with it…she shows her soul mark. Ruby feels her heart warm, the mark on Penny's chest is beautiful, and it looks like a crystal. A shimmering light green, she can feel her soul too and she knows that whoever Penny's soulmate is, they'll love her eternally. Ruby's seen an array of relationships and emotions and knows, that Penny will be loved, because she loves her too, her dear friend who deserves the promise of happiness just as much as anyone else.

Ruby is 15, hopeful, and awestruck in the moments she meets him. Her soulmate is a tall boy, with deep gray eyes that remind her of the midnight color that tints her soul mark. It's a color she knows she could stare deeply into and lose herself in; in an instance Ruby loves him. She's dropped her books, but that doesn't matter anymore because she'd found him, her other half, she can't help but think back to her 9th birthday and the quiz she'd taken. The complete opposite's remark was seemingly true, but she didn't think she could even care about fights and bickering that could occur down the line. Ruby didn't think she would have the heart to stay angry at him anyway, and she felt that was something he would feel too. They would fight; but in the end love and forgiveness would strengthen their bond. She can't help but let a small, shy smile escape her, her heart is practically beating out of her chest in excitement as she looks him over, her eyes drinking in details and memorizing them by heart.

The moment ends almost as soon as it began, meeting his eyes tells her something she wasn't expecting, he looked…fearful, almost terrified. Ruby doesn't quite understand why it's there, the fear in his eyes, the hesitance in his body language when moments ago he'd been open, relaxed. The conversation was quick and fleeting at best now, he didn't even really reply to her prompts and was gone mere moments after, her heart sank as she watched him go. How could they build on this? He seemed scared of her, but why? She was his other half, someone he had hopefully been waiting for since he'd learned of soulmates and about his mark. Her stomach turned anxiously as she gathered her things, she knew what rejection could mean in the future…the black mark would become less of a mark and more of a smudge or stain on her skin.

A painful reminder…she hadn't been wanted. Ruby hurried out of the classroom, intent to track him down and talk things through, they had to at least talk. She could be overthinking the situation, maybe she had misread his expression, and he could have felt unprepared to have met her, not yet ready to have to make room in his life for her. She was ok with waiting a few years, maybe get out of school before pursuing anything serious but surely, they could at least start off a friends. She shoved her things into her backpack and stashed it under her hood before decidedly cutting the rest of her school day short. Ruby felt a little guilty but she wanted to talk things over, while things were still fresh. She didn't want things to go sour from lack of speaking to one another, and she wanted to know what was causing the issue between them.

She found him in the courtyard, on one of the far benches, he looked lost in thought, eyes trained on something she couldn't see. He looked…hurt. If that was the right word to use, Ruby approached carefully, clearing her throat to catch his attention.

He looked like a deer caught in the headlights of older modeled cars that still had primitive dust bulbs burning yellow and dingy white. He didn't say anything regarding his previous actions, he just seemed to withdraw from her presence, like he was trying to make himself smaller. That didn't suit him…he always had a confidence about him, and the sudden lack of it was a little alarming. Ruby gave him a gentle smile, tilting her head just a bit.

"…let's go somewhere, I wanna sit down and have a proper talk, ok?" she offered, holding out her hand for him to take. It was a metaphorical olive branch she would extend as long as she had too, if he was uncertain then she would erase all worry. Ruby would help him, protect him, she could see marks littering his body, old scars faded with time, and she could see something in his eyes, beyond that midnight sky that spoke of a time and place that had become akin to her in an instance. She could feel something just under the surface, her other half was troubled and she was more than willing to be patient for his sake, she would be his hero even if he didn't know he needed her.

Mercury seemed to consider her words, his eyes trained on the hand extended out to him and he pulled himself up, ignoring her hand with a grunt.

"Whatever you say." He muttered, avoiding her eyes. Ruby held back a sigh, she would take what she got, though she believed this was progress, even if it was small in nature, she felt this was the beginning of something. Something good, good for them both, hopefully.

* * *

 **So. Posting this early because I am a smartie and forgot my laptop cord all the way back in my home town. I have to go get it sometime this week but I thought I would post the Ruby-Centric Chapter before my laptop dies entirely. I shall get to work on chapter 3 when I retrieve the cord~**

 **It won't be too long, so don't worry! I think the 3rd chapter is going to be hecka long though, a lot of things they need to talk about, things to be honest about. God, Sad Mercury in need of love is my aesthetic, cause there is definitely more than we've been shown in the show to him. There had got to be more and I need to knoooow.**

 **Anyway, next chapter is the last!**

 **Thank you!**


	3. Chapter 3

Ruby was slightly baffled at how easy it was to cut class at Beacon, no one even checked to see if she was supposed to be in a class and the same went for Mercury, both were allowed to board the airship down to Vale with little to no hassle. They were quiet, sitting together but not close enough to be mistaken as anything more, they weren't really together yet to begin. They were soulmates, but that only got them so far, they actually had to build on the relationship before it could be called a relationship. Ruby's scroll buzzed halfway through the flight, pulling her away from deep though to look at the message, Yang was worried. Mercury watched her thumbs hover over the keypad, thinking of what to say in her reply.

"…you could ignore her…" he grunted, looking forward and falling silent again. Ruby snorted,

"If I did that there would be a manhunt out for me, she'll think I'm in trouble." She explained, typing a short message. Mercury hummed before leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees,

"Pretty sure you've proven yourself more than capable in combat, I think you can handle a few missed classes and some make-up work." He huffed, Ruby smirked and sent the short paragraph before silencing her scroll and stashing it away in her skirt pocket.

"You say that like you know what you're talking about, past experiences?" she teased tying to lighten the mood. Mercury sent her a look, one that was hard to read and dampened any humor she was trying to bring. He looked forward and sighed heavily, his shoulders releasing tension before he leaned back in his chair.

"What do you want to talk about?" he asked, breaking the silence after another few minutes left to their thoughts. Ruby blinked before jerking her head in a nod

"Oh! Right, uh, well…I guess a good way to start is to talk about ourselves? I mean…we just met and I think we should build up and get to know each other before we get to the serious stuff…we have all day at this point." Ruby offered with a small smile. Mercury glared, gaze seemingly boring a hole through the floor of the ship.

"I don't think that's a good idea. There's not much to talk about." He muttered before Ruby scoffed.

"Uh, yeah there is? We just met, I don't really know you but I know that…we were meant for each other." Ruby soothed, Mercury turned his glare on her and sneered.

"In this day and age that means little, people not meant for each other end up together and people destined to love each other hurt their loved ones more than anyone else. Soulmates aren't my thing Ruby." He finished, looking forward, declaring that the end of the matter with his actions. Ruby glared and crossed her arms

"You agreed to come, if you wanted things to be brief should have said so back in the courtyard…Look. I know this whole thing can seem…overwhelming. But the good this is, we don't have to be in love just yet, a friend of mine said sometimes soulmates start out as someone you need or someone to help you. We don't have to be those couples on TV flaunting their relationship…we can just be friends, y'know?" she asked, looking at him closely when his eyes lit up briefly.

"…I guess that works…" he mumbled, Ruby smirked and nudged his arm playfully,

"You start, I can get chatty when I want to be and you seem to be a man of few words." She said with a gentile warmth to her voice Mercury hadn't heard before.

"It's not that…I'm a man of few words, it's just I don't know what to say…" he explained softly, Ruby hummed in acknowledgment before standing and untucking her shirt and pulling it up. Mercury frowned, preparing to switch seats and pretend he didn't know her anymore, he didn't know where this was going but he was not on board with it. Ruby pointed to a black mark on her navel and proudly smiled,

"My mark, the one the represents you. I was born with mine, since you were born first and all." She left her shirt untucked and flopped into her seat, looking at him expectantly. Mercury looked away,

"The color doesn't look very…nurturing." He chose his words carefully and Ruby shrugged.

"It's just a rare color, but I like it…it matches your eyes." She blurted before she could catch herself. Mercury blinked, studying her close now, with dark eyes and a tight-lipped frown.

"…It's the color of a midnight sky, dark and mysterious…It suites you." Ruby chimed softly, folding her hands in her lap nervously before looking to her feet.

"…I used to not like it when I was younger, I got teased kinda because black is very, very rare…and many times it's the color of death in soul marks, but mine isn't black-black. I decided it was the color of the night sky, when the stars and moon shine brightest…" she trailed off as Mercury chuckled lightly.

"Ruby…it's black. My eyes aren't some pretty color, they're like…a void. I see what I need too." He replied, ignoring how her face fell into dejection. Ruby perked back up though, a weak smile followed,

"What's my color?" she asked, excitement bubbling in liquid silver.

"Red." He sighed, pursing his lips, it didn't sound as grandiose as she had made his color sound. It was just red, granted it was the brightest red he'd ever seen, but it was red. He glanced at her, she looked disappointed, like she was expecting him to describe the color lovingly and tender.

"Well…can I see the mark?" she asked, tone a little pleading, Mercury glared, body going tense at the thought of her looking at scarred flesh and old wounds, her mark ruined by countless mistakes and punishments.

"No." he snapped, starting her slightly, she hadn't expected such a negative reaction.

"Is it in a private spot!? If so that's fine! I don't-" Ruby began and he cut her off with a sneer,

"Maybe I just don't want to show you because I don't see us together-together? I don't see us getting along or being in love. I don't even see us as being friends, we're too different." He finished quickly before jostling with the ship as it landed. Ruby looked taken aback, her eyes were wide with confusion.

"You're-…You're not even going to try? The whole point of the outing was to stop being strangers, to get to know each so we could become something….more? I guess." Ruby explained, following after as he left the ship, quickening his pace as she kept up her pursuit.

"Ruby just drop it!" he snarled, shoving his hands in pressed linen pockets and keeping his head downturned, he could hear her footsteps behind him.

"You know what? You're just- Grr! You're just being a huge jerk! Why is it that you're trying so hard to be hateful all of a sudden? Do you not want me? Then reject me and get it over with so I can move on with my life!" she shouted, yanking on his arm and pulling him to face her. He glared and shoved her back,

"I can't! I don't think I could ever bring myself to reject you so please just move on and leave me behind! I'm no good for someone like you, just forget this ever happened." He growled, turning to leave.

"What if I can't reject you either!" she protested, fists balled at her sides, shoulders hunched like she was fighting back tears.

"I've been waiting my whole life for you! I didn't even mind all the prediction you'd be awful because of the color, some stubborn butthead that would oppose me in everything! Because I wanted to meet you! You're my other half! The other part of my whole world, why are you trying so hard to fight that? Why did you even agree to come?" she snapped, approaching him with a heated gaze. Mercury scoffed

"Like I have to answer to you-" Ruby shoved him back

"I demand you answer! If you want me to reject you so badly….you need to tell me why! I want to know why you came with me, I want to know why you think of yourself as no good for someone like me…the purpose of this is to learn about you, Mercury. Because like it or not, until I learn to hate you…I can't help but love everything about you! Your eyes, your voice, this jerky personality! All of it. I love you." She cried, hot tears pooling in her eyes. Mercury felt his chest wrench and twist at the sight, he felt his stomach knot, and his heart ache at her pain.

"…I came only because I was hoping I could get you to hate me or let me go at the least…I'm not…I didn't grow into the name of some valiant messenger from the past Ruby…I grew into the name of a poison. I'm not good for you because loving me is just going to hurt." He murmured, Ruby sniffled and managed a weak glare.

"…well I'm not going anywhere, I'll be the judge of whether I can love you or not. We share our hearts…I don't want mine back without at least knowing the person who holds it…" she declared softly. Mercury groaned and threw his head back, looking up into a cloudless sky.

"…Fine. Fine…you want to get to know me, that's fine. Just know that when this is all said and done I can guarantee you'll be hightailing it back to your team, hoping we never cross paths again." He sighed, Ruby made a small 'hmph'

"Give me some credit, I'm not some weak little girl!"

"I'm 19 and you're 15. I'm you're elder by 4 years! You're little to me." Mercury sassed, cocking his hips and gesturing for her to lead the way.

"This is your idea, so you can take point." He snickered, following behind; Ruby didn't miss his expression fall out of the corner of her eye. He looked…tired, like he was trying too hard, trying to be hurtful or tough when he was on the verge of breaking down. She could see the pain, the long buried, old, ugly pain hidden in his eyes.

"Let's get lunch…then, we can talk by the bay if you want? It's always pretty this time of day, then maybe a walk in the park?" she wondered aloud, hoping for Mercury's input.

"This sounds like some crummy date." He said sourly, Ruby shot him a gentle pout, he choked on his own breath before looking away.

"Whatever…" he mumbled, a hot flush creeping onto his cheeks, he hated how it felt. It felt like shame…like rage too, but this he knew wasn't either of those emotions, this was something foreign and not entirely unwelcomed. He didn't like it but all the same, it was less oppressing than that of hot shame or bubbling rage. Ruby fell into step with him, her face was satisfactory, quite peaceful too, and Mercury looked away as she continued to lead the way. He jumped a bit when her arm looped through his, hands still in his pants pockets.

It was strange, a soothing calm settled over him at her touch, it felt right to be connected like this, Mercury lost the nerve to pull away when she tightened her hold, the calm that had overtaken his system was, welcomed considering the hell storm he knew was coming. Nothing good would come of a relationship, not when he had obligations to uphold with Cinder and Roman; falling in love would only cause damage. Who it would end up hurting more he didn't know.

Ruby led them down to a small café by the park she wanted to visit earlier, it was quaint if he was being honest, it took some architectural points from that of buildings in Mistral, and he freed his hands from his pockets and reached for some lien in his back pocket.

"I'd feel bad if I made you pay when I'm asking you to…" he paused, trying to find the words, Ruby didn't let him finish.

"We could go half and half y'know? I can get my food." She said, digging a wallet of her dress shirt's pocket.

"If that's what you want." He murmured, looking at the rather small menu, though all of the items on the menu sounded good. Ruby ordered a sandwich and a juice, Mercury ordered the same; Ruby resumed the lead when they left. They ended on a bench near the bay with a nice view of the ocean, eating in silence with the smell of salt on the dust trails from ships. Ruby made a humming noise

"That's the freight yard where we stopped Roman." She explained finishing a bite of her sandwich, Mercury looked over to the yard and quirked his brow. That's what Roman had been snarling about that night, Ruby and her friends thwarting his last dust heist, and the big one at that.

"You and your team did all that?" he asked, feigning slight interest, if anything the information could be helpful in easing tensions he was sure he would meet when he returned to the dorms. Especially since he was ignoring his Scroll and had skipped classes, Emerald would report to Cinder and there wouldn't much else he could do at that point.

"Well we had the help of Blake's friend, Sunn, and my friend, Penny! You'll hopefully get to meet her during the festival, you might like her, and she's a bit…quirky though." Ruby spoke thoughtfully. Mercury nodded, taking a sip of juice before crumpling his sandwich wrapper.

"Pretty impressive, given what I've heard from your classmates." He offered, Ruby looked pleased, a shy smile as she pushed some hair behind her ear.

"Tell me about yourself, any adventures back home in Mistral?" she probed, wide eyes searching his expectantly.

"…Not really, average life I guess…" he replied, the lie sitting like a rock in his gut, there was a strange, yet easily overlooked desire to be honest with her in this moment. An odd chance to come clean about the hell his life had been, he ignored it in favor of asking more about herself and her team. Ruby answered happily, a faint tint of pink dusting her cheeks as she spoke, overjoyed at his sudden interest in her. Mercury made mental notes of important facts here and there, listening to her speak, if it were anyone else he'd feel they were talking his ear off; but funnily enough Ruby's voice was soothing, even if she was just complaining about the heiress' attitude during the whole thing with the black haired one.

Mercury leaned back against the bench, head tipped back on the seat as he closed his eyes.

"Then Nora took a whole watermelon and-!? Mercury…? Did you fall asleep?" she asked, stopping mid-story about a chaotic food fight he kinda wished he'd been a part of.

"Nah…just resting them, you can keep talking." He murmured, jumping when he felt her weight lean in to him. Her head rested against his chest and she fell silent, several long moments passed with Ruby just resting alongside him.

"…I think I was 9 when I decided that I wanted to meet you…my birthday…" she broke the silence carefully, looking out to the ocean with a faraway glean in her eyes.

"…I was…younger…Pretty sure it was the day you were born I wanted more than anything for us to meet." Mercury hummed, distance in his voice.

"…I heard that marks appearing can be painful, was it?" she asked, turning her head to look up at him.

"It was awful. I thought I was dying actually; but then I saw it and I remembered some late night show, how happy everyone was…I wanted that, briefly…wanting things didn't last long in my house." He sat up, avoiding her questioning gaze.

"…Mercury…let's take a walk…that park is close by and then…can we please lay everything out. Nothing cryptic or evasive…just honesty." She stood, offering her hand again, he looked at it tentatively.

"Ruby…I told you I'm not a good person for someone like you." He murmured and she scoffed, grabbing his hand and squeezing it gently.

"And I told you we are meant for each other, I know people can choose different paths and I know some soulmates aren't meant to be but I want to try. With you I want to try and build something before we just throw it away." Ruby pulled him up as he frowned, speechless. The walk to the park was short, and awkward, she refused to let go of his hand and the sun was setting behind them. He could see the red in her hair better now, the black bleeding into red tips was fitting for a pair like them, and he liked it.

She lead them to a secluded patch of grass and fauna before plopping down on her back and looking up to the sky, the dark of night setting in on the fiery sunset. He joined her and sighed heavily as her fingers intertwined with his once more.

"I can start." She stated softly, her voice almost a whisper.

"You've told me all about yourself Ruby…" Mercury huffed softly, sending her an irritated glare. Ruby smirked before looking to the sky again,

"My parents weren't soulmates. In fact, I've seen a lot of couples who just aren't meant to be come together and make something of their lives. It's…difficult sometimes too, knowing that there is someone supposedly perfect for you out there, but the person right before your eyes is all you've ever needed." Ruby hummed thoughtfully.

"My sister is markless, yet she found someone, also markless but they don't love each other any less. My friend Jaune, his soulmate is Neptune, I don't think you've met him yet. They…don't really know what to do with each other, Jaune is trying to flirt around with Weiss and Pyrrha….Neptune is flirting with Weiss yet he'll steal glances at Jaune. It's all a mess I don't particular enjoy being involved in, I didn't even know until Yang let it slip they were soulmates." Ruby mumbled, looking for stars to start appearing. Mercury listened to her breathing, soft and relaxed in the stillness of the park's flora and fauna. He could see some trees and flower patches around them but this spot, had a perfect view of the sky. Mercury wondered if she knew about this place beforehand.

"My uncle…he loves someone else, and is worried that…when he does meet his soulmate, that the love he felt before will up and vanish…" Ruby continued, rubbing a thumb over Mercury's knuckles focusing on a callus from his youth.

"Nora and Ren…they're complicated but that's ok, Nora explained that they became what was needed before they could be in 'love' and together-together…they've always loved each other as family but I think someday soon it'll be more. Kinda like with us…I think we need to be something before we can be together…whether it's friends or just someone to help each other…" she trailed off and let go of his hand to prop herself up to look at him properly.

"…can I know some stuff about you?" she asked, eyes silently pleading.

"I guess I agreed to be honest with you…" he grunted before looking past her to the now dark sky, still starless.

"I memorized your birthday, the day you were born was always at the back of my mind. For both good and bad reasons…I didn't, exactly have the standard childhood growing up. You could probably call it down right awful, being an outsider looking in. But your birthday, God, I was excited to know that my old man, and who ever my mother had been, made someone like me that was capable of having another half in their life. That I could possibly be capable of having a happiness they never got." Mercury paused, it sat thick and heavy in the air.

"Then my old man made it his lifelong goal to tell me…how you'd never, ever want me." He bit off, a weird lump forming in the back of his throat, he pushed the feeling down and grunted. Ruby blinked, clear confusion clouding her silvery stare.

"It was…hard. Growing up with him, he wasn't much for encouragement, rather he'd take an approach that always ending in a form of punishment, meant to make me learn it better or quicker…I got used to it though…and got used to the idea of just not accepting my other half…that it was best for the both of us." Mercury grumbled, glaring at the still starless sky.

"I counted years…I can't remember my own birthday but I always knew yours…when you were 9 I tried jumping off this really old bridge out by my dad's cabin…I wanted to die. I also remember that I couldn't do it because I didn't want to hurt you…you were only 9 after all." He finished quietly, Ruby's eyes were filling with tears, he avoided looking at her directly, the lump in his throat was getting harder to ignore. He jumped when a hand cupped his cheek gently, he forced himself to meet her gaze, expecting to see some form of pity or remorse; instead he found a hurt that he could only describe as mirroring his own that he kept hiding away and ignoring to move on, even when it kept holding him back.

"Ruby. Please don't look at me like that." He whispered, voice tight with emotions threatening to tear him apart. Ruby forced a small smile, followed by a choked laugh

"How else am I going to look at you?! You're acting all- Matcho! And I can see that you're hurting…I'm kinda angry about it actually!" she managed, sitting up to dry her eyes, though the tears didn't seem to stop. Mercury jerked up and snarled

"I don't think it's your place to get upset over my actions! This is how I am! I don't- I don't process ok? I just don't deal with things like this, I get angry, I kick some shit, I go on with my life. I don't cry, I don't grieve, and I don't feel sympathy for those beneath me! I-" Mercury froze as delicate hands cupped his cheeks and soft lips pressed against his. Everything stopped, he shoved her back as panic rose into his chest, and he looked at her with wide eyes and shaky breaths. Ruby sniffled and dried her eyes on her sleeve.

"Is this why you think you don't deserve to be loved? Because of how you live? Just because you're a huge…Jerk. Doesn't make you undeserving of love Mercury…" she offered soothingly, her eyes were a molten silver as new tears kept forming. His stomach was in knots, he felt dizzy and hot all over, his eyes burned and his chest ached.

"Shut up." He snapped, voice choking out as a shudder passed though him, it hurt all over and he didn't understand why, he didn't want to know why either. He wished she'd stop, forget him, move on; anything but make him feel so weak, vulnerable, and just let him be.

"Mercury. I understand." She spoke gently, careful of her words, she moved in close and he sobbed, heavy and wet, almost guttural. Ruby could see him fight for a moment longer before his shoulder began to shake violently and muffled cries echoed in his chest,

"I hated him!" he choked out, fingers digging into the ground, breaking earth and crushing soil in-between his fingers.

"And that's ok…" Ruby cooed, one hand on his shoulder, the other his chest, pressing under the sternum gently.

"You don't have to talk, you can cry, I understand, you don't have to justify what you're feeling Mercury…I understand." She soothed as his sobs got louder and heavier, shaking his whole form.

"Just breath." She offered softly as he gasped in-between cries, his chest hurt and truth be told he didn't know why he was crying. He didn't know if it was to make up for all the times he hadn't been allowed or that it was relief, or that Ruby understood; maybe it was both. It was ugly, snot and tears were collecting unpleasantly with each gross sob, but his hands refused to move from the dirt, like they were refusing to acknowledge he was breaking down.

Ruby prompted him to take deep breathes and grounded him, she didn't think this was weakness or vulnerability, she saw it as long overdue.

"God, I'm a mess." He managed a short laugh before snot blew out his nose and he made a gurgling noise of disgust and the sobs continued, lessened now to soft shakes and a few rumbling whimpers. Ruby hummed and pulled out a packet of tissues

"Blow." She instrusted, holding one up, he did as she told and she helped clean him up before setting them aside in a wad. Mercury looked at her, tired tear stained eyes and a ruggedness accumulated over the years of wear and tear, he looked well beyond the age of 19. He looked older, wiser, he knew things he'd never tell her to spare her that burden, but all the same she knew them in her soul. Ruby knew he was a hurt man, twisted and healed-wrong after so many breaks, his heart was pure like hers, but he didn't have to live like that was who he was supposed to be. He needed someone to understand his trials, his life, and that in hating his father…he also loved him, in some warped way.

"…I don't miss him…but sometimes I think about better days with him…sober days…" Mercury spoke, voice a hollow, rough tone from crying so hard.

"That's an ok thing to do…even if he hurt you sometimes its ok to think about better times…he was your dad. He was all you had." Ruby assured, cupping one of his hands in hers and brushing away the dirt with gentle strokes.

"…I'm-…" Mercury hesitated, eyes downcast, focusing on his legs with a knowing look.

"I'm scared of the future…a future with you…what if I hurt you…what if I become like him and I hit you or try to-…what then…?" he managed, his chest going tight again. Ruby pressed her lips to his hand, kissing over a faded scar and looking up at him with warm, loving eyes.

"I don't think you're capable of that Mercury." She confessed, a light flush in her cheeks; he faltered before his face twisted up as if he were in pain. He curled forward pulling his hand from hers and pulled at hair on the back of his neck, a low whine and he shot up, eyes filled with fear and longing.

"Ruby I killed him!" he cried, expecting her to jump back and shout 'Murderer!'

"I've killed so many-! I can't-" another kiss, this one searing. She pulled him close deepening the kiss as she did, he couldn't speak and his arms wrapped around her instinctively, she didn't know what to say to him. There were no words that could be said, he confessed to killing people, something he'd live with until he died, no words she said would ever make that better. She pulled away, breathless and shaking,

"…even knowing that, Mercury Black, I love you." She panted, meeting his eyes and seeing the storm clouds in a midnight sky trapped within. His chest heaved and a crooked smile made its way onto his face as he held her,

"Ruby…Ruby Rose, I think…I love you back…but-" he faltered and frowned, pressing his forehead to hers.

"We can…go slow, right?" he mumbled, averting his gaze, Ruby snorted and carded her fingers through his hair.

"Slow sounds like a good starting point…do you wanna get hot chocolate…maybe a coffee?" she asked, cupping his cheek again, wiping away a tear stain gently. He nodded and moved to pull himself up, Ruby stood first and helped him stand, his hand seeking hers this time. It felt nice to just feel, empty. There wasn't any fire burning deep inside, no bitterness, just an emptiness filled with a faint warmth.

A late night diner was still open, the last ship didn't depart until 10:30 and they had time to kill while they waited. Ruby sat next to him, resting on his arm, hands still interlocked as she sipped a hot chocolate with extra marshmallows and him a coffee with cream and sugar. It was almost surreal, Mercury wouldn't have really thought it would turn out like this that they would end up somewhere between friends and 'together-together'.

A sense of dread was still building in his lower belly, Cinder would be furious when he finally would return to the dorm, having disappeared for most of the day, and no doubt team RWBY would be on his ass the next few days if Ruby did spill the beans.

"…are you going to tell your team?" he asked carefully, taking a slow sip from his mug, Ruby looked up

"Do you want them to know?" she asked in return, waiting patiently with a soft smile. He frowned, debating whether to tell her everything, he'd only ever known this bitterness and hurt, seeking revenge on a world that didn't even know he existed truth be told. Now he had something warm, an innocent, gentle soul, and his other half. He wanted this more than any kind of revenge he'd ever tasted, not even when he'd seen the life leave his old man's eyes, the remainder of Mercury's legs screaming at him for straining so quickly after 'surgery'. The words sat on his tongue as he considered her question,

"…I'd like them to know…my team however." He grunted, glancing at her with a playful smirk. Ruby grinned impishly,

"What a trail of broken hearts left behind you?" she teased softly, nudging his arm.

"No…they actually don't know I'm marked." He mumbled, rubbing his nose nervously, Ruby blinked mouth opening slightly in surprise.

"You- You never told them!?" she gasped, eyes going wide.

"Nope. Never came up in conversation sooo…I guess it didn't matter?" he offered with a weak smile, Ruby swatted his arm

"Never came up! Growing up I never heard the end of soulmarks and soulmates! I know it was different for you but your team must have been living under rocks! Don't ask you about it my butt!" she barked, taking a swig of her cocoa. Mercury chuckled and pointed to his lip

"You have a marshmallow stasche." He grinned, she hmphed and licked her upper lip before he snuck down and kissed her gently. She tasted sweet and like milk chocolate, he pulled away after the kiss ended chaste.

"…I can get used to this, I think…" he mumbled, looking to her to see if she was alright with his actions, she was flushed but smiling like an idiot. He grinned like one too at seeing her expression, he could feel it deep inside, his soul lighter from the release of things he'd held onto; he didn't think he could go through with Cinder's plans. It wasn't the lack of nerve or will, he'd still snap the neck of any half-wit degenerate who called themselves good with a gun in any backwater shithole for spitting in his direction; but it seemed like all that rage had just vanished. As if Ruby plucked it like some weed growing rampant in his soul, threatening to consume him whole. He watched her drink her cocoa and felt warm, pleasantly warm in his belly, not from coffee but her.

He wanted to see roses every morning when he woke up, the bright, beautiful red that adorned his soulmate in kind, not the color of blood or rusting old buildings. The color of His person. The color of the one he could call his own and love, and receive that love returned on him from her. He drank in everything about her as if he were a man dying of thirst, he wasn't the sappy type to become clingy or emotional but having gone so long without knowing a feeling like this, he was happy to over indulge this once. He understood Roman a little better now too, it hadn't been the hurt that brought Neo and Roman together, but strength and love in each other. Finding something in someone to make you stronger or better.

"You ok? You're kinda…staring." Ruby broke his train of thought with a nervous giggle, he smiled and shrugged.

"I was just thinking I guess…I never really understood why people seek other people out to build a relationship other than to have sex and maybe pop out a kid…but I think I'm starting to get the concept of why people like finding someone to share a life with." He hummed thoughtfully.

"Oooh, getting all deep and thoughtful over there while your coffee gets cold." She mused raising her eyebrows before settling back in her seat with a heavy sigh. Mercury snorted and grinned before looking out the window, the streets were emptying as the hours ticked down to midnight. They would arrive rather late back at Beacon, his smile faltered as he thought back to Cinder and Emerald, and the mountain of messages pilling away in his scroll. He was hesitant to check, given who knows what would be said in the messages, Emerald would probably chew him out, Cinder some thinly veiled threats. A soft beep caught his attention,

"Wow, either my team trusts me or my sister kept everyone from calling…just texts." She hummed, scrolling through the line of messages from her team, Mercury felt for his own scroll and hesitantly pulled it out and opened his messenger block. He frowned, there was only one message, from Cinder.

"…Seems my team wasn't as concerned." He hummed, slipping it back into his pocket and focusing on her with a smirk, Ruby shrugged and replied to a few

"They are going to interrogate me when I get back I think, most of them think I cut class to do something stupid, like attend a bake sale. Though I think they're just trying to mask the tension, I've never done something like this before…" she explained, slipping her scroll into her jacket pocket and curling into him. Mercury rested an arm around her shoulders and sighed

"…to be honest I think my team is going to kick my ass. I've never really disobeyed orders…" he murmured carefully.

"Disobeyed orders? I don't understand why…you have to follow orders? I mean I give commands but I haven't ever given like…orders? Or put it that way to be honest…" She looked up curiously and Mercury squirmed a bit.

"Ruby…my team is a little…awkward I guess…sometimes we're given orders and we're expected to follow them…" he trailed off, her brow furrowed and she waited for him to continue.

"…I have orders to do some pretty bad things…" he murmured and Ruby pulled away, she looked away and silence fell over them.

"…I won't ask what those orders are…but I will say…you could choose? You don't have to follow them…if you don't want to Mercury." Ruby offered, a nervous smile and worried eyes focusing on him. He frowned and nodded

"I guess I'll have to give it some thought…" he replied, Ruby nodded before leaning on him again,

"…if you're not ready to see your team again, you could always stay with me for the night and meet mine, I'm sure the moment I tell them I actually met you, they'll want to see you immediately. Kills 2 birds with one stone I guess." She shrugged and pulled herself up after a quick glance at the clock.

"The airship will be at the station soon, we better go so we don't miss it." She offered her hand and he took it easily, threading fingers through hers and feeling the warmth in his chest from the contact. He was so uncertain about the future, and the choice he apparently had. He didn't know who to talk to or where to go about this, Ruby could only do so much, and truth be told she'd already saved him once tonight. He didn't need another rescue, she was doing that just being herself, and he let her lead him by the hand, anxiety building in his chest on the ride back.

If he did return to Cinder, it would undoubtedly be the last time he'd be able to call Ruby his own. Cinder was a patient woman but he'd cut class and reconnaissance to spend the day with Ruby, and even then he hadn't made good on his promise to himself to reject her. He couldn't nor did he want to anymore; surprisingly, he felt she was good for him. Returning to Cinder would destroy any potential they could have together, Cinder would either hurt him enough to make him let go of Ruby, or Ruby would get caught in the crossfire of what was to come with the Vytal festival. Either way…they'd both end up alone…

Ruby shifted next to him, her eyes drooping from exhaustion and crying. He rested his head a top hers and hummed lowly, enjoying low engine hum and smell of roses mixed with some vanilla shampoo Ruby must use. He thought to Cinder's text,

"I'm so disappointed in you." A thinly veiled threat indeed, she was probably beyond pissed off at this point, he'd been missing since roughly 10 am after all. The ride back to Beacon felt like mere seconds, they landed and Ruby pulled her hand from his, taking a few steps towards her dorm and looking back at him. He hesitated, and she could see his dilemma,

"…No one is saying you have to make choices right now. But I can see it on your face, you're scared of going back to the people you've always known. That's not how it should be Mercury, you should feel comfortable returning to them and if you don't then…come with me, just for tonight. If I don't see you again after tonight…then I have my answer…and I will accept it." She spoke, words wiser than her looks; he felt his chest squirm and twist anxiously before following after her. He'd sleep on it, let his subconscious sort it out, though nothing good ever came from his inner thoughts, men he'd killed under orders, others had been killed on the whim of a thought.

He followed silently, her dorm room coming up faster than he'd expected, the door was practically ripped off it's hinges before she'd finished entering the her keycode and scroll up to the sensor.

"RUBY ROSE WHERE HAVE YOU-" the blonde one, Yang was screeching before her eyes caught sight of him.

"Yang! My beloved older sister! I am so sorry to-"

"Who is this?" Yang cut her off, sending a scrutinizing glare in his direction.

"You know Mercury from class, yeah?" she asked a nervous giggle as Yang moved in close to glare at him, a little fiercer this time. By now the rest of her team had emerged to see the commotion, and the neighbors across the hall could be seen peeking through a crack in their door.

"I've seen him around, why is he here?" Yang hummed turning to Ruby with a small smirk

"Uhh- Well…you see, he's ah…" Ruby fumbled her words and Blake's ears perked and she gasped.

"He's her Soulmate!" she blurted, Yang blinked and whirled back on Mercury eyes wide.

"Whhhhaaat?" she squealed tackling Ruby into a hug,

"Yang!" Ruby protested, squirming in her sister's arms as the heiress approached. She looked him up and down and sighed

"I guess he's suitable for her, he looks like they've had a lot to talk about." Noting the red rimmed eyes and still slightly flushed cheeks.

Ruby chuckled lightly as Yang let her go

"We had some stuff to work out, sorry for bailing on today…we just really needed to deal with the stuff before things went sour…he's staying the night, if that ok?" she flailed holding her hands up in defense. Mercury fidgeted as all eyes were on him in an instant

"Why is he staying over?" Weiss grumbled, looking to Ruby, she flushed and poked her fingers together.

"Well…he's not ready to tell his team just yet?" she looked at Mercury nervously and he shrugged

"It's complicated." He huffed, shoving his hands into his pockets. Her team frowned a moment before Yang broke the silence with a shout

"Oh my gosh my baby sister's got a boyfriend!" she pulled him into her arms and he grunted as she practically crushed his ribs,

"Welcome to the family, Dad's going to freak! He won't be outnumbered at family dinner's anymore." Yang teased, dropping Mercury unceremoniously as she sauntered into the room, retrieving her scroll to presumably inform their dad of the good news. Ruby followed after, protesting the notification of their dad, Blake and Weiss waited for Mercury to enter. Both giving him calculating stares as he stood awkwardly inside the threshold of their room, the two not locked in argument about telling their father clambered into their beds, Weiss scrolling through the internet on her scroll and Blake reading a book as the two sisters duked it out. Mercury felt a cheesy grin worm its way onto his face as he watched them bicker, this was nice. It felt…right.

"Ruby." He prompted, causing her to face him with a huff, he quirked his head

"Wouldn't you rather he know now before I attend one of these family dinners? Showing up on his doorstep without a warning might get me into trouble." He teased, Yang giving him a thumbs up

"Ha! Even your boyfriend agrees dad should know! 2 against 1, Dad finds out tonight!" Yang cried triumphantly, composing her message quickly. Ruby scoffed

"We're not at that stage yet! We're still building on it…" she trailed off glancing to Mercury before Yang hummed and nodded her head

"Riiiighht, and I'll believe that when Zwei can fly." Yang teased. Ruby huffed before rummaging around in a dresser

"I have some old t-shirts of my dad's that you can borrow so you don't have to sleep in your shirt." She explained showing him to the bathroom connected to their room. Mercury pulled off his jacket and set it aside on one of the desk chairs and slid into the bathroom, Ruby came in a second later with a shirt and unfolded it with a cackle.

"Aww man, me and sis got him this shirt, didn't realize we packed it up." She hummed affectionately,

"Why do you even have some of his shirts?" Mercury asked unbuttoning his uniform shirt, Ruby shrugged

"They make nice sleep shirts if we get lazy and run out of pajamas." She explained, setting it on the counter and removing her hood and setting it aside on a hook by the door. Mercury removed the starch pressed top and untucked the white tank top he wore underneath, he looked up and frowned as he caught Ruby watching. She flushed a bright shade of pink and he sighed,

"Ruby, do you…want to see your mark…the one on me?" he asked, awkwardly shifting from one foot to the other. Ruby grinned excitedly and stepped into the bathroom, Yang called in from the other room,

"Don't close the door!" and Ruby glared at the doorway

"Shut up Yang!" she snapped in reply before turning back to Mercury, expression softening.

"…I-…It's not. It's not nice to look at ok? So don't…freak out I guess?" he offered, Ruby frowned and Mercury shifted. He turned around and felt his body involuntarily tense at Ruby's sharp inhale, he didn't want to even try and imagine her face, he flinched when he felt soft fingers touch a patch of skin not disfigured by some scar, though she began to trace up along a gash from years ago, the one that had gotten him caught.

Her fingers jumped to another one, and Mercury felt a shudder of disgust run down his spine. Ruby must have felt it because her hand pulled away, he hunched over.

"Sorry…I couldn't stop him from-" he began, Ruby pulled him close, arms encircling his waist and he stiffed.

"You don't have to explain it." She assured, lips ghosting over the marred skin and his mark, placing a gentle kiss against the rose.

"I think it's still beautiful, I'm glad to see something like this…on you, my mark I mean. Not these scars…but I don't think those are ugly either, they're part of you…and It's like a reminder…that you made it this far and survived that." She breathed, hugging him close, his breath hitched and he smiled weakly. Look into the mirror above the sink, seeing her thin arms around him and feeling her cheek pressed against his back, like a promise.

"Anyway…me and Yang are going to set up a pallet for you on the floor, the bunk beds are safe but…I don't want to risk it with two on one, y'know?" she asked pulling away and coming around to his front. She smiled sheepishly,

"I'll let you finish getting ready for bed, and help Yang." She gestured to the main room and began to back out of the bathroom,

"Ruby…one more thing." He called and she paused, looking at him curiously. He gestured for her to come close and she did, a tired smile as she waited. He hesitantly took her hand and pressed it to the out edge of his thigh, she jumped and glared up at him in confusion.

"Uhhh…?" Mercury began to pull her hand lower and came to the junction of flesh and metal, Ruby could feel the hem of the prosthetic through the fabric of his pants. He could see her working it out in her head, her hand trailing lower on its own, coming to the junction of his knee.

"…It's the whole leg…" she murmured softly, Mercury flushed

"Both legs…" he replied carefully and Ruby looked up in alarm. He shrugged

"I didn't have a choice in the matter…" he explained softly,

"What are you two talking about!?" Yang demanded, leaning in the door frame. Ruby jumped and whirled around

"None of your business! Sheesh!" she snapped, shoving Yang out of the bathroom and following after, sending Mercury a worried glance. He pulled on the shirt and exited, removing his shoes and placing them by the door. Ruby and Yang had finished the makeshift pallet of spare blankets and a pillow and Ruby had dressed in pajamas, pulling her own blanket and pillow down and flopping into the mass. She patted next to her and he joined her, settling down under the covers.

"You wear socks…" she snickered softly so her team wouldn't hear.

"Never know when those crummy shoes might come off." He shrugged, letting Ruby in close and she snuggled against him with a huff.

"Makes sense…I guess…should you be sleeping with them on?" she asked quietly, Mercury smirked softly.

"Technically no, but one night won't kill me." He hummed sleepily, settling down under some of the covers. Ruby smiled and her hand found its way to his cheek again, moving it to his bangs and brushing them to the side carefully.

"I love you Ruby." He blurted softly, Ruby's smile widened and her eyes softened, turning to that shimmering silver.

"I love you too, Mercury." She replied softly, a loud groan and a pillow was thrown at them.

"Go to bed! Geez!" Weiss snapped, rolling over and hiking her blankets up. Ruby flushed and curled in close to Mercury again before yawning and closing her eyes. Mercury wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes, drifting off quicker than he expected into a rather dreamless sleep.

He woke up with a short gasp, sitting up in surprise, confused about his surroundings for a moment before last night came back to him. He sighed heavily and looked around, running a hand through his hair, seems team RWBY had gone to class, Mercury silently thanked Ruby for letting him sleep. He pulled himself up and dressed for the day, noticing a slip of paper tapped to the door addressed for him. Mercury frowned and read over it carefully,

 _'Good morning!_

 _Yang made me get up for class this morning, even though I was sleepy. But I guess this note is more for your sake, and what you're going to do next. I figure, if I don't see you ever again, then I guess that'll be the answer. I really do hope I see you again, I love you and I want us to give ourselves a chance at being together-together. It's all you now, hope to see you at lunch?_

 _Love, Ruby!_

 _P.S. If you want breakfast food, all we have are toaster pastries.'_

He snickered, and pocketed the note. Heading in the direction of the classrooms, he didn't really know what his plan was, he figured he was heading towards Ruby, an odd feeling in the pit of his stomach. Being with her felt right, like everything that had been wrong before was made better with her in his life. He felt his chest squirm again, a warm, light feeling when he thought of her and the happiness she seemed to radiate when they were together. He was uncertain of himself and what he should do but he knew he wanted her in his life.

He wanted to see her again, to hold her and kiss her again; he didn't really want to hurt her, he didn't think he could. He looked up and smiled, seeing a flash of red adorn with a few stray petals falling after; Ruby turned and saw him, her eyes going wide and warm. A wide smile as he approached her across the courtyard,

"I slept late…made it to lunch though, right?" he smirked. Ruby giggled and nodded

"Yeah, just heading into the cafeteria now…you gonna join us?" she offered her hand and he took it, feeling their fingers interlock perfectly, like it was meant for them to be like this. He knew he had other things to do, he needed to come clean to someone who could help. He didn't want things to go through anymore, he didn't want to watch the world burn, and he just needed her. Ruby leaned into him, ignoring the cheers coming from her team as they entered the cafeteria. He saw Emerald out of the corner of his eye and felt a knot in his stomach but pushed it down, he was with Ruby, he didn't need to dwell on it right now. He'd work it out.

Ruby hummed happily and he looked down at her with a grin, before leaning down and giving her a gentle kiss.

"I'm happy…that you wanted me…" he admitted quietly, Ruby smirked playfully

"Like I could ever refuse you…" she replied kissing his cheek. He felt better than he had in years, and he was looking forward to whatever future this path held for them. He wouldn't let anything hurt her, not with him here, and in turn he knew Ruby would do the same. They'd be there for each other, thick and thin, fight or no fight. He knew eventually they would fight, and they would scream and call each other every name in the book. They would be angry, and avoid each other, but they would always return to one another, an apology on their tongue and love in their hearts.

They looked forward to the future together, the one that belonged to them and no one else. Whatever that future was, they'd be together, and that was what mattered to them.

* * *

 **This was a partly long chapter, but it could have been longer if I'm being honest. There were a lot of parts I cut for the sake of length, like Mercury running into Goodwitch and ratting out Cinder, but I would rather that be an implied ending, I'm pretty sure y'all can think of a good epilouge? Like Mercury is a little tattle tail, nothing bad happens and he tries to get in a better mental state so he can build a proper, healthy relationship with Ruby. Cause I do think in this Universe they will date but it's made hard by Mercury's lack of knowledge in the romance and loving department, he understands physical love like kissing and touching, but emotionally he's stunted.**

 **He didn't grow into that as a child and has to grow into it now with Ruby's help and guidance. Also he might be a lil OOC in this one? Due to the fact he breaks down on Ruby and comes clean to her part of the way. I dunno, like I mentioned before...I have genuine trouble writing a Mercury that has good and pure happiness in his life. BUt that's what Ruby is there for, to give him that. uvu**

 **Anyway~ Thank you to the people who reviewed! I know it's only 3 chapters but I am so, so, so happy at the feedback! So much of it was positive and pumped for each new part! Thank you so, so, so much! I really loved reading what you had to say about this one. I was hoping to draw a cover for this but never got around to is, so I might still do that and just upload it to DA, you can find me there under the same name.**

 **Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR STICKING IT OUT TIL THE END.**

 **Until next time?**


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